(a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to beverage cup holders mounted on different types of shopping carts used in various types of stores and more particularly but not by way of limitation, to a beverage cup holder attached to or incorporated into a portion of an open top basket of a standard wire mesh shopping cart.
(b) Discussion of Prior Art
Heretofore, there have been a variety of different types of beverage cup holders and article holders for vehicles and shopping carts used in different types of stores. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,306 to Adamson et al and U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,077 to Adamson, two different types of shopping cart cup holders are disclosed. One cup holder is adjustably mounted on a shopping cart handle and the other holder can be retracted under the handle of the shopping cart. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,382 to Bergin et al., a cup holder is illustrated having a saddle that fits over a top edge of the side of an open top shopping cart basket. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,653 to Ingwersen, a cup holder accessory is described for holding over-size drink cups in a standard size drink cup receptacle.
None of the above mentioned prior art shopping cart cup holders specifically disclose the unique features, structure, function and advantages of the subject invention for attaching or incorporating into a portion of an open top basket of a standard wire mesh shopping cart as described herein.
In view of the foregoing, it is a primary objective of the subject invention to provide a beverage cup holder which can be easily attached to a portion of an open top basket of a standard wire mesh shopping cart.
Another object of the invention is to provide one or more beverage cup holders that can be attached to the shopping cart but not interfere with the operation of the cart or when the cart is nested inside another shopping cart.
Still another object of the beverage cup holder is it can be telescoping for adjusting the height of the holder for the convenience of the user of the shopping cart.
Yet another object of the cup holder is a portion of holder itself can be used for advertising without interfering with the operation of holding and removing the beverage cup.
A further object of the invention is the cup holder can include a small item carrier for items that typically might fall through the openings in the wire mesh of the open top basket of the shopping cart.
Another object of the cup holder is it can be attached to a first side of the open top basket, attached to a handle of the shopping cart or incorporated into a bottom portion of the a foldable rack mounted at a rear of the open top basket.
The cup holder, in one embodiment, includes a circular cup ring. The cup ring is used for receiving a portion of a beverage cup therethrough. The cup ring is attached to a swivel. The swivel is mounted on a top portion of a round vertical telescoping cup ring support. The cup ring can be moved horizontally to various positions above the top of an open top basket of the shopping cart or to the side of the open top basket. The top portion of the ring support is slidably received in a lower portion of the cup ring support. The lower portion of the cup ring support is attached to a first side of the open top basket. The open top basket is mounted on a cart frame of the shopping cart. The cup ring support is designed to be raised and lowered to various heights for the convenience of the user of the shopping cart. A portion of the cup holder can be used for advertising.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent to those familiar with different types of beverage cup holders and cup holders used with shopping carts when reviewing the following detailed description, showing novel construction, combination, and the various embodiments of the beverage cup holder as herein described, and more particularly defined by the claims, it being understood that changes in the embodiments to the herein disclosed invention are meant to be included as coming within the scope of the claims, except insofar as they may be precluded by the prior art.